Youth Development Committee

Co-ordinator - Frances Hayden

The Youth Development Committee is comprised of a group of members with an active interest in fostering the development of our Guernsey youth and the continuance of the breed. The Guernsey youth in Australia is widely spread across the country and so our focus is on engaging people and encouraging them to develop their skills and knowledge of the Guernsey breed. The main activities the committee undertakes is organising the Guernsey Youth Team for the Youth Challenge at International Dairy Week and providing youth scholarships to the World Guernsey Conference every three years. The committee has also previously run youth camps in Queensland and Victoria and is active in fund raising through charity auctions, donations of semen sales and merchandise. 

If you have any suggestions for future youth events or activities or if you would like to get involved and help out our Guernsey Youth then please contact Frances Hayden on  0428 553 836 or email frankie1808@gmail.com

IDW Youth CHallenge

The Guernseys have been competing in the IDW Youth Challenge since 2006. The event involves 10 youth aged 8-22 years competing across 3 disciplines, clipping, leading and judging. The clipping involves 4 members clipping a heifer to be ready for the show ring within 30 minutes. The leading involves 3 members parading their selected heifers together as a group. The judging involves 3 team members judging and placing the 4 selected animals and then one elected team member will give their reasons for the placings on the microphone. We are proudly sponsored in this event every year by SEMEX and we thank them for their ongoing support. 

It is always a pleasure to get the youth together from across the country and gives the opportunity to make new friends whilst they compete. Our best results in the event have been finishing 2nd in 2008 and finishing 3rd in 2019. Our greatest success however is seeing the progression of the youth as they develop their skills and knowledge and the lifelong friendships it creates. 

YOuth Scholarship

The Guernsey Youth Scholarship was originally designed to allow a Guernsey youth to attend the American Guernsey Convention each year. Recipients of this scholarship include Roisin Dunne, QLD and Ollie Abblitt, SA. In 2016 the scholarship changed to allow a Guernsey enthusiast aged 18-30 years to attend the World Guernsey Conference which is held every 3 years. The 2016 recipient was Amy Cleggett, SA who attended the World Conference in New Zealand. Our most recent recipient was Grant Gallus, VIC who attended the 2019 World Conference in the USA. 

Feedback from recipients

'I consider my application to be one of my best decisions thus far...This trip was an opportunity of a lifetime... The opportunity to see so many Guernsey cows was for me the reason to be there and the networking and connections a great advantage. It has definitely left me planning return trips.'
Roisin Dunne
2014 Recipient
'There are a lot of changes and progress occurring throughout the world... it really is an exciting time to be a part of the breed... I hope that the scholarship can be run again in 2019 and allow another Guernsey youth to attend the World Conference and build their passion, knowledge and friendships within this breed as I have been able to do.'
Amy Cleggett
2016 Recipient
'This was an amazing opportunity to meet, greet, create goals, share and develop ideas with Guernsey people from around the world... I highly recommend you all start slowly putting away money as the years progress ahead of 2022, 17th World Guernsey Conference in the UK. It's an adventure and opportunity of a lifetime!'
Grant Gallus
2019 Recipient